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Parkour Philosophy PDF Print E-mail
Sunday, 11 December 2005
 

Parkour Philosophy


Many people take the principles they learn through parkour and apply them to their lives. By challenging themselves in parkour both mentally and physically, it becomes easier to deal with problems and obstacles in everyday life. When a difficult situation comes up in daily life, a parkour practitioner can see this as any other obstacle which they've learned to overcome quickly, efficiently, and without disruption to their intended path. Another part of the overall Parkour philosophy is to be useful in a variety of situations. Parkour itself does not strive to be a "complete" discipline.



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Display 27 of 27 comments

1. 05-19-2007 11:11

two things struck me about the philosophy of parkour and its application to life: 
1. it teaches fearlessness, which is necessary for success in everything, from trying a new move to pursuing a career promotion to dealing with your own mortality. 
2. the fundamentals of parkour involve finding yourself in an environment, and discerning the path to take to achieve your goal. the path, even for those with the same goal, may not be the same..the point is to find your own path. to see it...and then to travel it.
jaczmin

2. 05-20-2007 17:04

Another aspect of philosophy pertaining to Parkour/Freerunning would be human beings curiosity and creativity. It also shows how advanced and evolved we are with our ability to solve problems quickly and efficiently, which is finding your "way" and being able to get through your environment.
Spartan

3. 09-04-2007 15:43

nice stuff
yea_i_own

4. 09-11-2007 16:06

yea i agree to this. where through the fearlessness a person goes through, their is freedom. When one does a vault or a long cat leap or even a wall flip, that person becomes free of fear, free from the bonds of gravity. To be free from the obstacles of life by means of effecient and quick thinking. With the knowledge of the vaults and flips of course.
kevothefilipino

5. 01-04-2008 22:17

yeppers hits it right on the dot
steady

6. 01-21-2008 05:54

i agree with most of the above, however, i make absolutely no claim that parkour will free you from the bonds of gravity haha. gravity is your friend, it gives you the friction necessary to haul ass - or to stop if need be. :-)
kuliik

7. 02-21-2008 04:21

I suppose it is not Parkour itself, it is the rush you get when you've overcome something hard. It's the feeling that makes you smile like a demon when someone says "that's impossible".

8. 02-21-2008 04:25

I suppose it is not Parkour itself, it is the rush you get when you've overcome something hard. It's the feeling that makes you smile like a demon when someone says "that's impossible".

9. 02-23-2008 15:09

i agree with every comment above except that you dont lose fear u cant be totally fearless(thats just wierd) however u can lessen ur fear with practice. jordy is right on the dot about the rush when u over come something big. 
i remember mi first monkey vault. i'd tried for ages and kept clipping but after a couple of weeks i finaly did it :grin :zzz :) 8) ;) :p

10. 02-28-2008 07:09

im new to this, but i believe that the fear is important, looking at something and feelin a chill up your spine, but then overcoming that fear and just doing it anyway. that to me is more important than learning the moves

11. 03-10-2008 18:05

I don't think fearlessness is the goal. The goal is overcoming obstacles. The more you fear something, the better it feels when you overcome it.

12. 03-10-2008 18:12

I don't think fearlessness is the goal. The goal is overcoming obstacles. The more you fear something, the better it feels when you overcome it.

13. 03-15-2008 07:04

lolololol :p

14. 03-15-2008 08:18

i agree with mostly everything said here, except for the fearlessness part. its not about removing fear, its about controlling it and overcoming it. as much as it sux, fear is a part of us, but it can b supressed and controlled. like, the first time you do something for parkour (tic-tac, kong vault, etc) ur first reaction is noooo im not doing this. and then do u it anyway, thus controlling ur fear. :zzz :grin :p

15. 03-21-2008 16:27

definitly, and parkour has helped me better understand what i can do and what i can't do.

16. 03-30-2008 20:58

Ok this is great but about being "fearless" I dont think that acctually means you have no fear it just means that you can control it.

17. 04-02-2008 17:39

Whenever I think of parkour, whenever I try and give face to my philosophy, I always come to the same conclusion. Parkour of course exemplifies freedom, no limits, blah blah. But what really connects with me when it comes to parkour is a sense of challenge, and a deeper desire to conquer. I see a towering structure in front of me, and I don't think: 
"Man, that sure would be fun to fluidly swing through and around to express freedom." 
No, it's actually quite simple what runs through my mind: 
"I want to get to the top of this bitch."

18. 04-16-2008 15:18

I think that the goal is what you set it. saying fearlessness isn't the goal could be argued to a point. Overcoming your fears may get you to the point of eventually jumping rooftops if thats your fear. I think parkour is maintaining a state of discipline and determination. If you're determined to overcome fears then you have to do things that scare you once in awhile. It's like being free from what holds you back 
 
learn2fly grl out!

19. 05-22-2008 10:18

Call me new to this, but not only is it to get over the obsticles and be fearless, it also is so where you can get to where your going as fast as possible. Personaly, I find that sort of thing fun :)

20. 05-28-2008 18:47

Not only can Parkour be useful for becoming fit, it can be applied to everyday like, much like already stated. It also is and was one of the three fighting strategies: offensive fighting, verbally backing out of unwanted situations, and the art of running away. Put this way, people think it's for those weaklings, popular to contrary belief, one must know when and how to choose his/her battles, if you know you can't talk your way out of a problem, or fight your way out of it, getting distance between you and a pursuer is the key and reason for parkour's existence. Plus it's lots of fun :) .

21. 06-22-2008 07:30

me like 8)

22. 07-15-2008 11:55

parkour is awesome!! :) :grin :zzz 8)

23. 07-23-2008 06:56

ye

24. 07-26-2008 21:07

Then it is settled. Parkour is our agency to push ourselves to the limit, in which ultimately brings us freedom. The more we refuse to push ourselves the less confident we become, but the more experience we gain in understanding our true boundaries gets us steps closer to our true goal; to become limitless.

25. 08-26-2008 18:39

awsome! parkour also for philosophers!!!!... 
............. :eek :eek :eek :? :sigh

26. 08-27-2008 12:55

PARKOUR IS THE SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!! AND IT HELPS YOU OVERCOME FEAR AND MY FAVORITE PART IS IT MAKES YOU A DAREDEVIL :eek :eek :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :grin :grin :grin :) 8) 8) 8) 8) :roll :roll :roll :roll :roll :x :x :x :x :x :x :x :x :x :x

27. 08-29-2008 06:01

I think parkour for me is about a different level of consciousness. before I began I would see the outside world, but after I became a traceur I began to "see" the world. I didn't just notice a cool sign, I started noticing alleyways and handrails and ledges and runs that I could do. and that's an involving process. it makes me feel more involved with the world around me. and to me, I think parkour is about bringing that consciousness to the world and seeing obstacles and then using your mind to overcome them. it sounds stonery, but I think it's true.

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